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Columnists

A Life Well-Lived: Shirley Padgett Lester (1947-2025)

Shirley Padgett Lester of Vinton went to her heavenly reward October 4. Below is the powerful eulogy her daughter Kelly Kiser wrote and calmly delivered at the memorial service...

BOB BROWN: How the White House Functioned With a Diminished Biden “Presidency”

Permit me to think out loud as an old-fashioned person who respects authority, history, and...

JOHNNY ROBINSON: The Gratitude Perch

On the old road up Mill Mountain, part of Roanoke’s fabulous greenway system, there’s a...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Sometimes President Trump Needs To Think Before He Speaks – Part II

Contrary to what President Trump believes, I think that Lakanwal was adequately vetted before September 2021,...

ROBERT L. MARONIC: Sometimes President Trump Needs To Think Before He Speaks – Part I

I read an article in the New York Post written by Ryan King on November 27 entitled...

Recipe of the Week: Exceedingly Patriotic Cheesecake Bars

I found this recipe at www.RecipeGirl.com. It looked so good and Patriotic! I am 39 and on my 40th lap around the sun...

If Only Life Had Warning Gates

Recently, I was at the home of a friend who has done a great deal of traveling in South Asia – specifically Nepal. ...

Mastering the Art of Truth Tell . . . Er, Stretching

From years ago: I was over at Sabrina's with son Cailan the other day. He and Chester, her same-aged son, were playing outside.  I...

Summer’s Flood of Green Not So Bad

Summer’s green can become tiresome, unless you take it one plant at a time. Some recent botanical discoveries have made the Green Tide...

A Soupçon of Poison in the Air

Poison ivy.  Its scientific name says it all: Toxicodendron radicans,” or “an easily-rooted poisonous tree,” as farmers and gardeners know all too well. ...

Lord, It is Good to Be

“Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord, my God, you are great indeed!" (Psalm 104) I’m writing this “corner” while at the...